EMERSON, Ga. – The Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitationals have
been decided, with three teams taking home the hardware from this week’s event
including the 643 DP Jaguars Hightower.
The 643 DP Jaguars Hightower knocked off the Triton
Rays/GBSA with an 8-0 victory to win the 17u Perfect Game-East Cobb Invitational
tournament at LakePoint on Friday.
The Jaguars scored first runs of the game in the third
inning on three hits and two walks against Rays’ pitchers Danny Harris IV and
Javeon Cody. They would tack on three more in the fifth, giving them a
comfortable 6-0 lead. With bases loaded in the sixth, the team had the
opportunity to run rule the Rays after scoring one in the inning. Luke DePiero
would finish the job, singling to center field to drive in the winning run.
The team finished the tournament with seven wins, winning
all of their pool and playoff games. They only outscored opponents 13-7 in pool
play, and the head coach of the Jaguars, Taylor Hightower, said that the team was
able to understand what they needed to do better, and did so. They finished up
much stronger than they started, which Hightower said is a tribute to the
attitude of the team.
“[They showed me] the ability to turn things around,” Hightower
said. “While we had some wins early on, they weren’t the cleanest wins, and I
had to talk to them a little bit about why we do these things while we come out
here and compete against the best of the best, because that’s what Perfect Game
does, they provide tournaments with the best teams. So we had to have a little
heart-to-heart, and they turned it around, they really took ownership of what
this team is about, and they get to go home with some hardware, which is always
sweet.”
Once the playoffs began, the team dialed it up, scoring no
fewer than six runs in each of their four playoff games. To get to the
championship game, they would have to face the Cincinnati Spikes, who had
beaten the No. 4 ranked Team Elite 17’s Prime 9-2 in the quarterfinals. The
Jaguars would win that game after scoring six runs, just enough to beat the
Spikes, who popped out with bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning.
The Rays came into the championship fresh off a 3-2 win
against the East Cobb Astros 16u, but were kept silent by a brilliant pitching
performance by Britt Kelly of the Jaguars. Kelly threw six innings, surrendering
three hits and one walk, while surrendering no runs. He kept hitters off
balance all morning with a 76-80 mph fastball and a 72-74 mph curveball. Kelly
said that it was a combination of his approach and mechanics that allowed him
to have success on the mound.
“Get ahead, get ahead early, and try to get them out,” Kelly
said. “Get down the hill, getting my arm out in front, reaching down towards
the plate and throwing effective strikes.”
Over the playoffs, opposing teams scored only 11 runs
against the Jaguars, with Hightower saying that it was a testament to the
defense of the pitchers playing a supporting role.
"The pitching was awesome. With a wood bat tournament, big
fields and good consistent umpires where you know what the strike zone is, it
makes it really easy to attack the zone. That was what we told everybody, ‘Hey,
let’s pound the strike zone with all three [or four] pitches,’ because we have
a really good defense behind them. It makes it easy for our pitchers just to
get comfortable and to get into a groove, and that’s what you saw. That’s why
pitch counts were kept low, we were able to use everybody and not overuse
anybody, and it worked out perfectly for the championship.”
Because they were efficient with their pitching, the Jaguars
were able to use Kelly, who would be named the MV-Pitcher of the tournament
after two strong outings which amounted to giving up only seven hits and 1
earned run over 10 innings of work.
“It means the world,” Kelly said on winning the award. “I
went out there, pitched my butt off, and I did it for my teammates.”
The run support was plenty for Kelly, with Peter York and
DePiero pacing the team at the plate. York would finish up the game 3-for-4
with three runs scored as the two-hole hitter, while DePiero drove in three
runs in the cleanup spot.
“Just a lot of good swings, that’s what we really talked to
our guys, especially coming back,” Hightower said. “Just going up there and
getting good pitches and getting good swings, the results will take care of
themselves, and it took a minute, but they started getting good swings off and
the scores indicated that. This group is really talented offensively, and they
can do a lot of different things. They can hit the ball in the gap, and we’ve
got some speed, but we executed really well.”
Hightower said the win meant a lot for his team, who he
thought had a strong showing, but pointed to the showing that the other 643
teams had in the tournament as well.
“It’s just awesome, because we had four teams in the final
playoffs,” Hightower said. “It was Sterling’s team (643 DP Cougars Sterling),
Danny’s team (643 DP Cougars Pralgo), Shelby’s team (643 DP Athletics Shelby),
and our team and easily could’ve had more. It just shows you the depth that 643
has, where anybody, on any day, in any place can advance, and it’s really cool,
because sometimes you don’t always see that. To see four teams in the same
organization in one of the top tournaments of the year, it’s pretty sweet, and
it speaks to the depth of the organization.”
The MV-Player of the tournament was Javeon Cody of the
Triton Rays/GBSA. Cody went 5-for-15 with a double, two home runs, eight RBIs
and six stolen bases.
The MV-Pitcher of the tournament was Britt Kelly who threw
10 innings, giving up seven hits and one earned run, while striking out five
hitters.
2017 17u Perfect
Game/East Cobb Invitational champions: 643 DP Jaguars Hightower
2017 17u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational runner-up: Triton
Rays/GBSA
2017 17u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational MVP: Javeon
Cody
2017 17u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational MV-Pitcher: Britt
Kelly
EMERSON, Ga. – Roadrunners Baseball defeated Team Elite Nation
15u by a score of 10-0, capturing the championship trophy for the 15u Perfect
Game-East Cobb Invitational tournament at LakePoint.
Coming into the championship game, both teams were clicking
on both sides of the ball, with Team Elite scoring 12 runs in their two playoff
games, while the Roadrunners scored 24 runs over three games. In the semifinals,
the Roadrunners run-ruled the Duluth Noles 8-0 behind a 3 2/3 inning start by
DJ Radtke. Team Elite Nation took down Team Elite Prime in their semifinal
matchup, shutting out their opponent 6-0.
The championship game was a one-sided affair, with the game
finishing in five innings. The Roadrunners played well on both sides of the
ball, which helped them all throughout the tournament.
Eli Turso took the mound for the Roadrunners and limited
Team Elite Nation to three hits and no runs over five strong innings. The
6-foot, 190-pound righty would earn the win for his team. Opposing him was
Gavin Collyer, who was knocked out early after yielding two runs and five walks
over 2 2/3 innings. Turso provided the Roadrunners with another strong start,
with the team allowing no runs in the playoffs, while surrendering only three
in pool play. Todd Howard, the head coach of the Roadrunners, offered this as
the keys to success for the pitching staff.
“Just throwing strikes, getting people out and getting
ground balls,” Howard said. “It was just amazing to not allow a run in bracket
[play], and I’m just proud of every one of them. Each pitcher got out there and
that’s what they were supposed to do, so it was a great job.”
The bats stayed alive for the Roadrunners, who scored eight
or more runs in five of their seven games in the tournament. They scored one in
the first inning and one in the second, but took charge of the game by scoring
eight runs over the fourth and fifth innings. Charlie Taylor and Patrick
Holloman led the charge at the plate for the Roadrunners. Taylor finished the
game 3-for-4 with two runs scored, while Holloman went 2-for-3 with two home
runs, two runs scored and four RBIs.
“I think our lineup is one of the toughest,” Howard said. “When
you’re making a lineup, you look, Patrick Holloman batted seventh and eighth
most of the time in bracket and during the tournament. Everyone can hit, up and
down, whoever’s in their can hit.”
Holloman said his approach was simple, even though the
results were big for his team.
“I was just trying to make solid contact with the ball and
hit solid line drives, and it just happened to end up in long balls,” Holloman
said.
Holloman, ranked as the No. 69 player in the class of 2020
per Perfect Game, hit four home runs over seven games, which led him to be
named the MV-Player of the tournament.
“It just means that I have developed into an all-around
player. I just love to hit and pitch, and I just showed my true talent.”
Even though the team showed dominance in the tournament,
they recognized the talent level that they competed against, which they reveled
at the opportunity to play. Howard told his players to stay in the moment, not
thinking too far ahead about where they could end up.
“[The competition was] very tough. I told them, when you get
into bracket play every team is going to be tough. We’re right up the street
from the [Georgia] Jackets, and we’re friendly rivals, so you knew that was a
tough game, and Duluth Noles, they’re a team with a lot of talent, and then we
we’re Team Elite at one time, and I knew they were going to be good, so I just
told them [to take it] one game at a time.”
“It was fun,” Holloman said. “I liked to see the level of
competition we played, and that’s why I like playing this level of travel
baseball, you see the best of the best every game you play.”
Howard said that the championship meant a lot to the
organization, who is no stranger to Perfect Game playoff runs. The team has won
Perfect Game events before, and enjoyed winning again, something that they feel
has become a tradition within the organization.
“It’s great, because we won the first one that was here four
years ago with our 17-year-old team, so it means a lot that we set a tradition
of winning in here and the World Wood Bat last year, so we feel very honored to
win it,” Howard said.
The MV-Player of the tournament was Patrick Holloman, who
finished the tournament 8-for-17 (.471) with a double, two triples, four home
runs and 12 RBIs.
The MV-Pitcher was Ben Willcoxon, who turned in seven
innings, giving up five hits and only three earned runs for Team Elite 15u
Nation in the tournament.
2017 15u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational champions:
Roadrunners Baseball
2017 15u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational runner-up: Team
Elite Nation 15u
2017 15u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational MVP: Patrick
Holloman
2017 15u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational MV-Pitcher: Ben
Willcoxon
EMERSON, Ga. – The East Cobb Astros took home the hardware
in the 13u Perfect Game-East Cobb Invitational Tournament, defeating Team Elite
13u Prospects by a score of 14-6.
Both teams jumped out of the gates early. Team Elite Prospects
would leadoff the game by scoring two runs in the top of the first, while the
Astros responded with three of their own in the bottom half of the inning. The
game would eventually be another run-rule championship game, the third of the
day. Thirteen runs were scored by the Astros in the game’s first four innings,
and the game looked to be over as the score was 13-2 heading into the top of
the fifth. Team Elite Prospects would not go down quietly, though, scoring four
runs in the top of the fifth to avoid the game ending there. It would take
another half inning to decide the game, with the Astros winning on a single by
Benjamin Hamacher in the bottom of the fifth to put the Astros on top, 14-6.
The Astros came in as the No. 1 seed in the tournament, having
received the by in the first round. They would beat the No. 4 seeded-Team Elite
13u Futures in the semifinals to secure their spot in the championship game. Team
Elite Prospects, the No. 2 seed, defeated the 643 DP Cougars 13u by a five-run
margin, putting them up against the Astros.
Offense was the calling card for the Astros in the
tournament, scoring 53 runs in five games. Astros head coach Ben Blumenthal was
pleased with the offense shown in the tournament, and the championship game was
no exception.
“I think a lot of it comes from 14-year-olds playing with
BBCORs a lot,” Blumenthal said. “They get used to having to hit the ball on the
barrel instead of using these drop fives, ridiculous bats all the time, and so
once they started doing that a lot, it was easier for them to find the barrel
when we came back down to the drop fives. They’re a big physical team and they
put together a lot of good at-bats.”
In the championship game, Sutton Smith, Thaddeus Ector and
Hamacher would by the catalysts in the lineup, driving in a combined six runs.
Smith would go 3-for-3 with three runs scored, while Hamacher went 3-for-3 as
well, adding three RBIs to his tournament numbers. Ector went 2-for-2 with two
runs scored and two RBIs en route to receiving the MV-Player award for the
tournament.
“It means that I’m following my technique that my coach taught
me, and I’m doing what I’m supposed to do; hitting the ball,” Ector said.
He added to that by stating the approach that he stuck with
all weekend.
“Line drives, and anywhere I could help my team out to knock
in runs and be a team player.”
Jaden Anderson and Jonathan Jaime would help to the
run-scoring efforts for Team Elite Prospects, adding two hits apiece.
Dylan Lesko started on the mound for the Astros, giving up
two runs in the first to Team Elite, but settled in nicely, giving up no earned
runs over the next three innings. Although Trey Sanders would allow four runs
in just 1/3 of an inning, William Mosley would bail him out, finishing the
fifth. Six runs were the most that the Astros had given up in the tournament,
but even then, the pitching still turned in a good outing. Blumenthal offered
his team’s approach on the mound.
“Just trying to fill up the zone as much as possible,”
Blumenthal said. “Early on, a lot of guys gave up some runs they shouldn’t
have, just trying to stress to the guys that if you fill up the zone, your
defense can work well for you, if not, we can’t defend that.”
Blumenthal said that winning the tournament was a product of
the talent level that the team brings each day. He said that even though his
team has many talented individuals, the team does a nice job of coming together
as a team.
“[My team has shown me] the same thing they’ve been showing
me all year,” Blumenthal said. “There’s a lot of talent on the field, and they’ve
really gelled together as a team, and they play for each other, instead of for
themselves, and it really comes together. Especially when guys are down, you
see the picking each other up in the dugout all the time.”
The Astros showed that team effort by taking down some really
good teams in the tournament. The win meant a lot to the Astros, especially
since the tournament was an East Cobb Invitational.
“It feels awesome. Just going out there and winning the
whole thing, it’s a good feeling,” Ector said. “It’s always great to bring the
championship back to East Cobb.”
Blumenthal said that the tournament would be a building block
for the team’s goals moving forward, and that it was another great opportunity
to face top-notch talent.
“It’s awesome,” Blumenthal said. “We love coming here,
tournaments are always run great, the talent is always through the roof, and it
means a lot to these guys. They talk about winning these and world series and
stuff like that, so this is really big for them.”
The MV-Player of the tournament was awarded to Thaddeus
Ector of the East Cobb Astros. Ector would go 7-for-11 (.636) with a double,
two triples, a home run, seven RBIs and a stolen base.
Evan Venable would receive the MV-Pitcher award. He threw
six innings, surrendering just one earned run while striking out six for Team
Elite 13u Prospects.
2017 13u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational champions: East Cobb Astros
2017 13u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational runner-up: Team Elite 13u Prospects
2017 13u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational MVP: Thaddeus Ector
